On the pista

We were all delighted to strap on our boots and skis and get onto the snow this morning. We were less delighted that Sestriere was enveloped by a thick fog, through which the sun bravely attempted to shine from time to time. Only British skiers were prepared to brave the almost zero visibility, which had the positive effect that the slopes were very quiet. Needless to say the Andersons were among these stalwart but foolish skiers. The fog made everything seem surreal; the trees looked fuzzy in the strange, soft light. We were rewarded by occasional beautiful views when the fog lifted, and we also got to know the resort a bit, particularly in the Borgata area, where there were lots of easy reds and blues to help us to get our "ski legs" back. It was lovely to be back in the Alps; the reps claim that the fog will lift by Wednesday. In the mean time it has started to snow this afternoon, which pleases me although there is already a goodly amount of snow to last us for the week.